


Lady Futaba

by Yelir61



Category: Persona 5
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-30
Updated: 2020-05-30
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:48:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,538
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24452392
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yelir61/pseuds/Yelir61
Summary: Yusuke is having trouble with a new piece. Futaba regrets finding out why.
Relationships: Kitagawa Yusuke/Sakura Futaba
Comments: 5
Kudos: 111





	Lady Futaba

“Inari. Inari!” Futaba prodded Yusuke, who had passed out in one of Leblanc’s booths. “You better not be dead! You promised you’d go to Akihabara with me later.”

“I remember no such promise,” Yusuke said groggily, lifting his head off the table. He blinked at her several times, his eyes hazy, until his gaze snapped back into focus.

“You were sleeptalking,” Futaba said casually, sliding into the opposite side of the booth. “I asked you to go with me, and you said yes!”

“Even if that were true, I question the validity of an agreement made with an unconscious man.”

“Oh, come on! You never want to go to Akihabara!”

“Because it is a pit of soulless consumerism,” Yusuke said primly, straightening the notebooks he had been sleeping on.

Futaba scoffed. “Anyways, why were you sleeping? You drank a cup of coffee like ten minutes ago.”

“It seems I am exhausted to the point that even Leblanc’s wonderful coffee cannot sustain me,” he said tiredly. “I have not gotten much sleep these last few days.”

“Working on something difficult, huh?” Futaba asked knowingly. She knew Inari well enough to know that nothing could absorb his attention like art. Well, maybe food, but he tended to make short work of that.

“Indeed. An extremely challenging piece. I can envision it perfectly within my mind. And yet, when put to paper...it is not quite right.” He frowned for a moment, before brightening. “Perhaps you might be able to offer some insight!”

“Me?” Futaba asked dubiously.

“Yes! I believe your advice could be invaluable,” Yusuke said, rummaging through his bag. After a moment, he managed to produce a sketchbook, and began flipping through the pages.

“Are you drawing a computer or something? They’re mostly just boxes, I don’t-” She immediately forgot what she was saying as soon as Yusuke showed her his sketch.

Three things immediately stood out.

One. It was far more detailed than most of Inari’s sketches. She had spent plenty of time hanging out with him by now, both in Leblanc and at the dinner, and Yusuke always had a sketchbook close at hand. Whenever he was struck by inspiration, he’d flip it open and begin to draw. Futaba didn’t mind; it never interrupted their conversations, and it made her feel less awkward about being on her phone while they talked. Unless he didn’t like how it turned out, he’d show it to her when he was done. It was usually something around them; someone at another table, or an interesting-looking dessert. A lot of the time, it was of her, working on her laptop or gesturing with fry. These sketches were usually quick, colorless pieces. This drawing, on the other hand, was very detailed, and fully colored.

Two. The subject matter. A woman riding a horse. Not the weirdest thing she’d ever seen Inari draw. In fact, by Inari standards, it was pretty normal. There were tons of paintings with people on horses. She assumed. What stood out was the fact that the woman was naked. Very, very naked. As in, wearing no clothes at all. The only thing covering her was her long hair, which partially obscured one breast.

Three. The woman was clearly her.

“Wh-” Futaba tried to speak, but her tongue didn’t seem to be cooperating. She suddenly felt incredibly warm, and there seemed to be stars dancing around the edge of her vision.

“It is the hair, I’m afraid. I cannot seem to find the correct shade of orange,” Yusuke said with a sigh. “It is one of your most striking features, and if I am unable to fully capture it, I am afraid it will taint the entire work.”

“Wh-what? What is this?!” Futaba managed to get out.

Yusuke beamed. “Oh! It is my take on Lady Godiva. A figure of myth originating in England, Lady Godiva supposedly rode naked in public to protest her husband’s high taxes. She is a common subject in Western art. After seeing several such paintings, I was inspired to tackle it myself.”

Futaba closed her eyes. The heat didn’t seem to be going away; in fact she was pretty sure it was getting worse. “Why-why does it look like me?”

“Well, I didn’t wish to simply replicate other paintings of Lady Godiva I have seen. Your build and hair color are quite different from normal depictions of her, which I thought would help distinguish it from the others. And I have far more experience drawing you then anyone else.”

Futaba’s eyes snapped open. “You’ve never-I’ve never modeled for you!” she said angrily.

Yusuke frowned at her. “Not in a formal setting, perhaps. But we do spend a considerable amount of time together. My sketchbook is filled with drawings of you.”

Oh god, why did he have to say that? Futaba felt like she had a fever. “But this is-I mean- she’s naked!”

“Yes,” Yusuke said calmly. “I admit, I am slightly disappointed I had to work from photographic references and previous sketches. But I felt that asking you to model nude for me might make you uncomfortable.”

Futaba jerked as if she’d been shocked by electricity. What was this combo Inari had unleashed on her, and how could she interrupt it? The blows seemed to rain down endlessly! Nude modeling? For Inari? Desperately she tried to stop her traitorous brain from imagining it, to no avail. Damn it, Inari!

“Are you feeling unwell?” Yusuke asked, concerned. “You look extremely red.”

“Of course I’m red!” Futaba shouted, waving her arms. “Idiot Inari! I can’t believe you-why would you-gah!” She buried her face in her arms. “You’ve killed me!” she announced dramatically. “Congratulations, Inari. You’re a murderer.”

“Have I upset you in some way?”

“You drew me naked! You don’t see why that would be embarrassing?”

Yusuke shifted in his seat. “I admit, I don’t really see the issue. Nudity has never been particularly taboo to me. Though I suppose it is to some people.”

“To most people!” Futaba said, lifting her head and glaring. “Would you really like it if I just took a bunch of pictures of you naked?”

“If you did it? Probably,” Yusuke said thoughtfully. “You do have a fairly good eye.”

Futaba blanched. “That’s-that’s not the point!” she said quickly. Don’t think about naked Inari, don’t think about naked Inari- ”I mean, why didn’t you ask for permission?”

“I was planning to, once I was prepared to paint.”

“Paint?”

“Yes. If I could successfully transfer the vision of beauty in my head to reality, I was hoping to use it for one of my assignments.”

“You-you were planning to show this to other people?” Futaba asked in horror.

“If it turned out well,” Yusuke said, nodding. “I was thinking of calling it Lady Futaba. Of course, I would fully understand if you wished to remain anonymous.”

“Anonymous? You’re talking about displaying a nude picture of me!” Futaba said angrily. “Permission denied! Refused! Blocked!”

“I see.” Yusuke said slowly. “That is...disappointing. But, I understand. At least I can cease wrestling with that elusive shade of orange for the time being.” He carefully tore the drawing from his sketchbook, before handing it to her. “Of all of my attempts, that is the best of the lot. It is only right that you should keep it.”

Futaba covered her eyes. “Why are you like this, Inari?” she complained.

“It is my nature. Now, I must see about returning to the dorms, while I am still awake enough to make the journey,” Yusuke said, rising slowly and collecting his things. “Farewell.”

“Goodnight, Inari,” she said automatically, as he left the cafe. Leaving her alone with the picture.

She should burn it. That would be the safest thing to do. Well, not the safest thing in the sense of being a safe thing to do; Sojiro had warned her about starting fires in Leblanc. But the safest thing in the sense of making sure that no one ever found out that Inari had drawn her nude. That was a fact she definitely didn’t want anyone finding out. What if they thought she had actually posed for him? What would Sojiro say? This was something she had to take with her to the grave. Maybe she could arrange for Inari to be buried alive with her, so he couldn’t spill the beans once she was gone.

Fire was definitely the safest way to go, she thought as she walked home. Trash was too risky; Sojiro might see it, even if she balled it up. Heck, even shredding it was no guarantee it’d go unnoticed. And of course, storing it between the pages of a textbook and sticking it back on her shelf was completely out of the question. After all, if she did that, she’d have to remember that Inari had managed to draw a very skilled, very beautiful picture of her naked on a horse every time she looked at that book. And then she might be tempted to take it out, and look at it every once in a while. Which would mean thinking about being naked around Inari. Which would be the worst.

“Damn it, Inari,” Futaba muttered, resting her head against the bookshelf.


End file.
